Limited consent: out loud, and repairing a stretched yes

Part 2 of 2

Part 2 of Limited consent. In the room, and when it has already happened.

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A civil litigation solicitor experienced in directions hearings.

In the room

The rule applies out loud. At a directions hearing, "no objection" to a set of short minutes will usually be taken as agreement to all of them. If you agree to some orders and not others, say which, by number, in the sentence: "Orders 1 to 4 are agreed. I do not agree to order 5 and would ask for time to consider it." The directions hearing guide covers this in more detail.

After a conversation with the other side about procedural matters, in a corridor or on the phone, send a short open email the same day recording what was agreed and its limits, "subject to any corrections". Settlement or mediation discussions are different: those may be protected, and an open email can compromise that. If they see it differently, you find out now, in writing, rather than in a submission later. The example letters include a confirmation template.

When it happens to you

If you discover that an earlier concession is being read more widely than you meant, do three things, in this order and without heat.

Find your exact words. Open the email or letter. Quote it. Do not paraphrase your own document from memory; the citation guide's rule applies to you too.
State the limit now, in an open letter. "My email of 9 February said [quote]. That was a statement about [narrow thing]. It was not, and should not be read as, agreement to [wide thing]. To remove any doubt, my position on [wide thing] is that [position]." Send it promptly; delay reads as acquiescence.
Log it. Both the original and the correction go in the correspondence log and, if it matters to the sequence, the chronology.

Whether the wider reading sticks will depend on the words, the context and the forum. A prompt, calm correction on the record is the best position you can put yourself in; it cannot retract a consent the court has already acted on or vary an order, and where an objection deadline has passed you may need the court's permission. Arguing about what you meant, without quoting what you wrote, is the worst.

From Jordan's case file

Fictional example: The bundle and the admissibility

Meridian's solicitors emailed Jordan a proposed index for the court book. It included an internal Meridian spreadsheet Jordan had never seen before the proceeding. The email asked whether he had "any objection to the inclusion of the documents listed". Jordan's first draft reply said: "No objection to the index." He was thinking about the book, which the court had directed the parties to agree. He stopped before sending. The spreadsheet was in the index. If he had "no objection" to the spreadsheet and it later mattered, that sentence could be read as no objection to the court relying on it. He rewrote the reply: "I have no objection to the documents in your proposed index being included in the court book. Inclusion in the book is a matter of convenience. My position on the admissibility and weight of item 12, the spreadsheet, is reserved, and I will raise my objection by the date the directions require." Two months later, in written submissions, Meridian said the spreadsheet was "included in the agreed court book without objection". Jordan's reply quoted his email. The point went no further. He had conceded exactly what he meant to concede, and one sentence had recorded the edge of it.

Common mistakes

Answering the easy half of a bundled request and saying nothing about the hard half.
Putting the limit in a separate sentence or paragraph, where it can be left out of a quotation.
Relying on tone. A reluctant yes is still a yes on paper.
Correcting by phone. The correction has to be in the same medium as the concession, or a more durable one.
Reserving everything. It hides the one reservation that matters and annoys the reader.
Not keeping the original. When you need to quote your own words, you need the exact document. The file-naming guide keeps sent copies where you can find them.

Checklist

Every concession names what it covers, in one sentence
Every concession names its purpose, or what it is not for
Where a wider reading is available, the wider thing is expressly reserved
Bundled requests answered part by part, by number where possible
Oral procedural agreements confirmed the same day in an open email, with their limits; settlement and mediation discussions excluded
Any stretched concession corrected promptly, in writing, quoting the original
Originals and corrections logged

General information only, not legal advice. Whether particular words amount to consent, waiver or an admission depends on their context, the rules of the court and the law that applies to your matter. All names, documents, dates and events in the examples are fictional. Last reviewed: September 2026.